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Friday, March 18, 2011

19-yr-old man traveling with abducted 13-yr-old

TUSCON, Arizona --Police and the public are looking for a 19-year-old Utah man believed to be traveling across the country with a 13-year-old Arizona girl he met online; police say he used his credit card in Texas on Wednesday.

UPDATE: There has been a sighting of Ashley and 19-year-old Jordan Anthony in Galveston, Texas. Police have been called. Please contact police if you see this girl, she is ill and in need of medication. She suffers from migraines. Her father is pleading that anyone with any information please contact the authorities or call 911.

Her father, Albert Kingsbury posted on Facebook: "Please, anyone who is near or at Galveston, TX and New Orleans in nearby...my daughter suffers from severe migraines and we think she is sick NOW or going to get sick very soon...PLEASE, I am reaching out to hospitals in that area for your help...the boy she is with may wearing a white tshirt with some sort of logo on it."

Ashley Kingsbury was last seen on Monday. When her parents found broken glass and dented walls in her bedroom, her cell phone on the floor, her purse, and everything she owns still at home, they called police to report her missing.

Her father believes something is desparately wrong and says he immediately asked that police issue an Amber Alert. Ashley's father, Albert Kingsbury, said they refused.

Police believe Ashley left of her own free will because they found early on that she and Anthony had been communicating online for about a year, and had also sent texts to one another.

The internet opens the door to strangers entering the lives of young children, as in this case. Ashley is only 13 years old. This 19-year-old man could have deviant motives for communicating with her and could have set the stage for Ashley to want to leave with him. There's no way of knowing what his true motives are.

Once the two met in person, as appears to be the case, her family believes something went awry and there was a struggle.

Her room "was trashed" the Daily Mail reports, with glass on the floor and dents in her walls. Police tried to downplay the glass by saying it was from a picture frame, as could be seen in a news video.

What concerns Ashley's family is that not a single thing was missing but Ashley. Her purse was there, her cell phone was on the floor. Her makeup was left behind, as were all of her clothes and everything else she owns. Her family doesn't believe she would have left all of those things behind had she left of her own free will.

Rachel Englehart, Founder and CEO of Bring Them Home and co-host of the Bring Them Home Now online radio show raised the concern that in other cases she's seen where a grown man will pose as a younger person. In one California case a girl was considered a runaway because she left with who she initially believed was a young man. It turned out the man who came to pick her up was actually a grown man and a sex offender. Fortunately in that case the girl was found alive.

Asked if he knows for certain Ashley is with Anthony Albert said:

"Here's what I know: She met someone online who claims to be this Jordan Anthony. According to his Mom and roommate, they knew that Ashley was 13/16 years old and that he had talked to them about her.

"This guy's friends and community know who he is and have been offering help to the authorities in any way that they can. His Mom said that he does not make decisions as you would expect a 19 year old to make, for example, Jordan got arrested when he attempted to walk from Utah to AZ to meet my daughter.

"Do I know for sure? Absolutely not. I only know what I have been told by Jordan's Mom and the authorities."

Erika Bannon Hurt left this comment to Examiner.com's previous article, "We need to bring little Ashley home to her family... Albert & Carrie are amazing parents and need their daughter home! PLEASE issue an Amber Alert and bring her home for her birthday on Friday!"

She then said, "it's not her boyfriend... he is a creeper that has been talking to her via fb from Utah!! What 19 year old man wants to hang out with a 13 year old girl?!?!?" She makes a good point.

Why no Amber Alert issued

The Daily Mail reports that if authorities believed she had been taken against her will an abduction case would have been set up, meaning an Amber Alert would have been issued. However, because they believe she left of her own will they did not issue an Amber Alert.

Ashley is a child and is considered in danger. It is unfortunate that the rules of an Amber Alert are so strict, something that missing person's groups are currently working on to change.

It is understandable that the system should not be overused, with fears of loosing its effectiveness.

The real question is would people become complacent if the Amber Alert were used in a case like Ashley's? From the comments people are leaving on Facebook and elsewhere online it appears they would prefer to see the Amber Alert issued, have people out there looking for this child, even if she communicated with this man. She's only a child.

Only time will tell what really happened. The most important thing is to get this child back in the arms of her parents so they can begin to work through what has occured over these past few days.

Ashley's father Albert Kingsbury said the US Marshals and FBI are doing everything to find her. News is spreading fast via social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter.

Ashley's family is outraged by reporters stating Ashley ran away. Ashley, they say, did not run away.

“What you reported on the news was a complete LIE! Where did you get your information? My brother and his wife knew nothing about Jordan! They are not OK with this, she IS NOT A RUNAWAY! She was taken from her home AGAINST HER WILL! Her room was destroyed, she took nothing with her, no phone, clothes, makeup, nothing!! This is the 2nd night in a row your station has fabricated this heartbreaking story! How dare you??”

This morning Ashley's father, Albert Kingsbury, posted a thank you to news stations who listened to the family's side of the story and said, "Thank you to KOLD 13, KVOA 4 and Fox News 11 for your responsible reporting and for getting all sides of our story...the Kingsbury's are eternally grateful for your help in getting the word out."

It is clear this family believes Ashley was abducted and it is important that people listen to what they’re saying as well as to what police say. Law enforcement all across the country are working hard to find Ashley and to bring her home. The issue her family and others have is that the Amber Alert might have helped locate the pair sooner and in missing persons cases, time is of the essence.

Media reported that Deputy Jason Ogan said there was no evidence of a forceful abduction. Her family wonders how this can be possible since broken glass was found in her bedroom as well as dents on the wall.

According to a person posting on the Facebook page set up in support of Ashley Sheriff Dupnik is the head of the department who is responsible for issuing an Amber Alert.

Ashley is a beautiful girl who needs to be returned to her family who love and miss her desperately. The pain and anguish a family goes through when their child goes missing is beyond what anyone can imagine.

It is imperative that if you have any information about this case you contact police immediately.

Amber Alert criteria

Police would not issue an Amber Alert saying Ashley’s disappearance did not meet the Amber Alert criteria, her family said. According to her father they've asked for the Amber Alert from the beginning. Those first few hours and days are the most critical in missing person's cases.

The general criteria for issuing an Amber Alert includes:

(1) There is a reasonable belief by law enforcement that an abduction has occurred;

(2) That law enforcement believes the child is in imminent danger of serious bodily injury or death;

(3) That there is enough descriptive information about the victim and the abduction for law enforcement to issue an Amber Alert to assist in the recovery of the child;

(4) That abductions are of children ages 17 and younger; and that the child has been entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) system.

According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, each case must be appraised on its own merits and a judgment call made quickly. Law enforcement must understand that a “best judgment” approach, based on the evidence, is appropriate and necessary.

Ashley's parents believe she was abducted, not that she chose to leave. They hope police will listen. When Elizabeth Ennen’s mother cried out for 16 days police didn’t listen and not only misclassified her a runaway but failed to change the classification - no matter how much the family begged them. It turned out Elizabeth had been abducted.

Police are saying the reason they are not issuing the Amber Alert is that there is every indication Ashley communicated with this 19-year-old man and had plans to leave with him. Regardless, 13-year-old girls are not able to understand that people are not always who they appear to be online.

Examiner.com located the Arizona Amber Alert website which is flashing “Endangered Missing: Ashley Kingsbury.” However, clicking on the “View Active Amber Alerts” link directs you to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) site which says, “There are currently no active AMBER alerts.”

The NCMEC has Ashley listed as an “Endangered missing” child. Ashley is 5’2” tall, 95 lbs., has hazel eyes and brown hair. She’s from Tucson, Arizona and it is believed she was abducted from her bedroom.

“Ashley, if you see this, please know that Mommy and Daddy aren't mad at you. We are worried about you especially because you don't have your migraine meds. Please call us so we can get you home in time for your birthday party. 1.520.808.4197 (Mommy loves you) and 1.520.240.2692 (Daddy loves you).”

The Facebook page is a great place to go share any information you have that you think might help police, as well as support for Ashley’s family.

Ashley’s birthday is Friday – her parents want her home to celebrate her safe return.

(Note: Most of the information in this article was obtained from information found on Facebook written by the family.)